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Information about Lord Lyon King Of Arms

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The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the head of Lyon Court, is the most junior of the Great Officers of State in Scotland and is the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grants of arms, and serving as the judge of the oldest heraldic court in the world that is still in daily operation. The post was formerly held by an important nobleman, whose functions were in practice carried out by his assistant, the Lyon-Depute. The practice of appointing Lyon-Deputes, however, ceased in 1866.

The Lord Lyon is responsible for overseeing state ceremonial in Scotland, for the granting of new arms to persons or organisations, and for confirming given pedigrees and claims to existing arms.

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Lord Lyon King of Arms and the Duke of York proceeding to St. Giles' Cathedral in 1933
As Lyon Court is a government department, fees paid for granting coats of arms are paid to the Treasury. The misuse of arms is a criminal offence in Scotland, and treated as tax evasion. Prosecutions are brought before Lyon Court, Lord Lyon being the sole judge. Appeals can be made to the Court of Session in Edinburgh, and ultimately to the House of Lords in London, following standard legal practice. There is no appeal if the Lord Lyon refuses to grant a coat of arms, as this is not a judicial function, but an exercise of the Royal Prerogative.

The Lord Lyon has several English equivalents.
  • Being responsible for Scottish state ceremonies he parallels the Earl Marshal in England.
  • Lord Lyon is Scotland's only "King of Arms", or a high heraldic officer. England has three: the Garter Principal, the Clarenceaux (responsible for southern England), and the Norroy and Ulster (responsible for northern England and Northern Ireland). Unlike the English Kings of Arms, he does not need permission from the Earl Marshal.
  • The Court of the Lord Lyon is the heraldic authority for Scotland, much as the College of Arms is responsible for granting arms in England.
Whilst the Court of Chivalry (which last met in 1954) is a civil court, the Lyon Court meets often and has criminal jurisdiction. Lord Lyon is empowered to have assumed coats of arms, and whatever they are affixed to, destroyed. As an example, when Leith Town Hall, now used as a police station, was renovated during the 1990s, several of the coats of arms decorating the Council Chamber were found to be attributed to the wrong person. The police were given special permission to retain the display, on condition that the tourist guides pointed out the historical anomalies.

The Lord Lyon is also one of the few individuals in Scotland officially permitted to fly the "Lion Rampant", the Royal Standard of Scotland.[1]

List of Office Holders

(incomplete)

References

1. ^ [1] The Court of the Lord Lyon

External links

  •  • [ e] Court of the Lord Lyon
King of Arms: Lord Lyon
Heralds of Arms: Albany | Islay | Marchmont | Rothesay | Ross | Snowdoun
Pursuivants of Arms: Bute | Carrick | Dingwall | Kintyre | Ormond | Unicorn
Officers of Arms Extraordinary: Falkland | Linlithgow | March | Orkney
Other Officers: Procurator Fiscal | Lyon Clerk and Keeper of the Records | Herald Painter
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Courts of Scotland are the civil, criminal and heraldic courts responsible for the administration of justice in Scotland. They are constituted and governed by Scots law.
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The constituent bodies of the supreme courts of Scotland are the Court of Session, the High Court of Justiciary, and the Accountant of Court's
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The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is one of the highest courts in the United Kingdom, established by the Judicial Committee Act 1833.[1] It replaced the Court of Delegates.
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The House of Lords, in addition to having a legislative function, has a judicial function as a court of last resort within the United Kingdom. Historically, the House of Lords also functioned as a court of first instance for the trials of peers and for
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Court of Session is the supreme civil court of Scotland. It is both a court of first instance and a court of appeal and sits exclusively in Parliament House in Edinburgh.

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The Lord President of the Court of Session is head of the judiciary in Scotland, and presiding judge (and Senator) of the College of Justice and Court of Session, as well as being Lord Justice General
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Sheriff courts provide the local court service in Scotland, with each court serving a sheriff court district within a sheriffdom.

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The High Court of Justiciary is the supreme criminal court of Scotland.

The High Court is both a court of first instance and also a court of appeal. As a court of first instance, the High Court sits mainly in Parliament House (or in the former Sheriff Court
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The Lord President of the Court of Session is head of the judiciary in Scotland, and presiding judge (and Senator) of the College of Justice and Court of Session, as well as being Lord Justice General
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Sheriff courts provide the local court service in Scotland, with each court serving a sheriff court district within a sheriffdom.

Sheriff courts deal with a myriad of legal procedures which include:
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The office of sheriff principal is unique within the judicial structure of Scotland, and it cannot therefore readily be compared with any other judicial office. It is one of great antiquity, having existed continuously since around the 11th century.
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SHERIFF is a telecom fraud detection and management system, originally developed by BT and MCI. SHERIFF is an acronym for Statistical Heuristic Engine to Reliably and Intelligently Fight Fraud.
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A District Court is the lowest level of court in Scotland. It deals mainly with minor offences and they operate under summary procedure.

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They were introduced in 1975 as replacement for Burgh Police Courts (see Burgh); they deal with the most minor
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A justice of the peace (JP) is a puisne judicial officer appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice and deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions.
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Court of the Lord Lyon, also known as the Lyon Court, is a standing court of law which regulates heraldry in Scotland. Like the College of Arms in England it maintains the register of grants of arms, known as the Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland, as well
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A Children’s Hearing is part of the legal and welfare systems in Scotland; it aims to combine justice and welfare for children and young people.

The children’s hearing is a lay tribunal made up of three members of the Children’s Panel
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Politics of Scotland

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Scotland

This article is part of the series:
Politics of Scotland

Scottish Parliament
Scottish Executive
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Solicitor General
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Scotland

This article is part of the series:
Politics of Scotland

Scottish Parliament
Scottish Executive
Presiding Officer
First Minister
Lord Advocate
Solicitor General
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Local government
Elections
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A procurator fiscal is the public prosecutor in Scotland. He/she also carries out functions broadly equivalent to the coroner in other legal systems.

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The Faculty of Advocates is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary.
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An advocate is one who speaks on behalf of another person, especially in a legal context. It is used primarliy in reference to the system of Scots law, Anglo-Dutch law and Israeli law.
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The Law Society of Scotland is the professional governing body for Scottish solicitors, based in Edinburgh. It was established by the Legal Aid & Solicitors (Scotland) Act 1949. The main aims of the Society are set out in the Solicitors (Scotland) Act 1980.
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Court of the Lord Lyon, also known as the Lyon Court, is a standing court of law which regulates heraldry in Scotland. Like the College of Arms in England it maintains the register of grants of arms, known as the Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland, as well
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Great Officers of State are traditional Crown ministers, who either inherit their positions or are appointed to exercise certain largely ceremonial functions. Separate Great Officers exist for England and Scotland, and formerly for Ireland.
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